1st July 2011 the Friday of Departure

Syrian Uprising 2011 Information Centre
SUMMARY (1/7/2011): Another Friday, and we think this was the biggest yet. People took to the streets in almost every majpr town and city across the country. At least 9 protesters have paid for their call for freedom with their lives. Sadly in Jabal Zawiyah the people couldn’t raise their voices above the noise of the tanks and artillery shells – at least 2 dead there. See the map for more info. Syria – Friday 01/07/2011

Ongoing protests in Al Mufti district of Hisiça and Kobanî. Mass arrests in Rukh ad-Din in Damascus, a predominantly Kurdish neighborhood.

…Syrian Uprising 2011 Information Centre: Hama (1/7/2011): Thankfully, it has been a peacful Friday in Hama. Security forces have largely been withdrawn, even the traffic cops, and since then the “armed gangs” have also strangely disappeared. With a population of 700,000 it is Syria’s fourth biggest city. So, how many of them stayed at home today? Hama, 1/7/2011

DAMASCUS (1/7/2011): The media have been taken to a protest in Barzeh, where 5 were killed last Friday, in order to show that peaceful protest is now “tolerated”. If only it were true. This is video from another area of Damascus, Qadam, where Mustafa Qadari was shot dead by security forces. 3 people have also been killed in Homs today. WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO. Damascus, 1/7/2011

KAFAR NABIL (1/7/2011): Protest in Kafar Nabil, despite the military operation that is sweeping through the nearby villages of Jabal Zawiyah. “Bashar is a vampire. Don’t you see world?”Kafar Nabil, 1/7/2011

ALBUKAMAL (1/7/2011): Welcome to the Friday of Departure – go on Assad, surprise us! There are widespread protests across Syria. This video shows Albukamal, in the east of Syria next to the Iraqi border. Tanks have been deployed there for about 2 weeks but it hasn’t deterred daily protests.Albukamal, 1/7/2011

…NOW! Lebanon
[local time]21:54A large anti-regime protest is taking place in the Hama city of Helfaya. (S.N.N)21:53A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday night in the city of Amouda shows dozens of people marching and calling for bringing down the regime.21:19 Protests against the Syrian regime are being held in front of the Qasmo Mosque in the city of Qamishly. (S.N.N)21:15 Heavy gunfire can be heard across Homs’ area of Baba Amro. (S.N.N)21:00 Security forces shot dead 11 protesters across Syria, AFP reports.20:54 An anti-regime protest is taking place in the city of Amouda. (S.N.N)20:42 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Homs neighborhood of Baba Amro shows an army tank rushing by while gunfire can be heard in the area.20:41 Power has been cut off in the cities of Saqba, Hamouriya and Kfar Batna, which are located near Damascus. (S.N.N)19:44 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Damascus neighborhood of Qaboun shows hundreds of people marching and calling on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to “leave.”18:43 There is heavy shelling in the Homs neighborhoods of Bab as-Sabaa and Khodor. (S.N.N)18:41 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Damascus neighborhood of Sabqa shows hundreds of anti-regime protestors marching and wearing the colors of the Syrian flag,18:39 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the city of Qatna, which is near Damascus, shows thousands of people marching and chanting against the regime.18:39 Syrian security forces shot and killed nine protesters on Friday as tens of thousands of demonstrators called on President Bashar al-Assad to step down in some of the biggest demonstrations since Syria’s uprising began in March, Reuters reported.18:35 There are reports of heavy gunfire in the Homs neighborhoods of Baba Armo and Bab as-Sabaa. (S.N.N)17:53 Around 150 Syrians fleeing unrest in their hometowns arrived Friday in North Lebanon via an illegal border crossing, a cleric working with the displaced told AFP.17:23 Activists said Syria’s death toll has risen to six people, AFP reports.17:10A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Damascus neighborhood of Mezza shows dozens of people protesting against the regime and chanting, “Why are you afraid?”16:50 People are protesting in Edleb’s Maaret Al-Noman. Thousands of people are chanting for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N)16:49 Security forces and Shabeeha militants have set up sniper outposts in Homs’ neighborhood of Bab al-Sabba. Some people were injured. (S.N.N)16: 48 Syrian security forces killed six demonstrators as more than half a million people took to the streets across the country on Friday to demand the departure of Bashar al-Assad, activists said.16:48 Security forces are besieging all entrances to Damascus’ neighborhood of al-Qadam. (S.N.N)16:47 One person was killed in Damascus’ neighborhood of al-Qadam. (S.N.N)16:43 Activists said more than 400,000 people demonstrated in the Syrian city of Hama, AFP reports.16:39A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Latakia shows hundreds of people gathered and calling on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to “leave.”16:38 Shelling can be heard in Homs’s neighborhoods of Bab al-Sabaa, al-Khodor and al-Shami. There are reports that some have been killed and others injured. (S.N.N)16:38 Security forces shoot dead Damascus demonstrator, AFP reports.16:36 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday shows people protesting in Homs district town of Qusayr. They are calling for overthrowing the regime.16:35A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Homs area of Tadmor shows dozens of people marching and chanting against the Syrian regime.16:34 WARNING: Viewer discretion advised: A graphic YouTube video purportedly filmed June 25 in the Damascus neighborhood of Kaswa shows the body of a 13 year-old-boy after he was allegedly killed by security forces. The boy’s mother and relatives are seen lamenting his death and cursing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.16:33A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Homs area of Ghouta shows hundreds of people gathered to protest against the regime.16:31 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the city of Harasta, next to Damascus, shows hundreds of protestors marching and chanting, “The people want to bring down the regime.”16:26 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Nahr Aisha in Damascus shows people marching against the regime.16:25 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in al-Ghouta in Homs shows people protesting against the regime.16:20 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Homs neighborhood of Rastan shows thousands of people marching and chanting against the regime.15:56A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Homs’ neighborhood of al-Waar shows people marching against the regime.15:55A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Homs’ neighborhood of Bab al-Sabaa shows people protesting and chanting “The people want to overthrow the regime.”15:52 Syrian forces kill two demonstrators in Homs, AFP reports.15:47 Large crowds of anti-regime protestors, coming from several eastern towns, are marching toward the city of Maarat an-Naaman in Edleb. (S.N.N)15:43 Security forces are still shooting at protestors in the city of Darayya, near Damascus. At least 35 people have been injured but no one has been reported dead yet. (S.N.N)15:27 Protesters in Enkhel were dispersed by security forces using batons and tear gas bombs. (S.N.N)15:27 People are protesting against the regime in Tadmur in Homs. (S.N.N)15:26 Protesters in the al-Qadam neighborhood of Damascus are being fired at. (S.N.N)15:21 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Hama’s Assi Square shows thousands of people gathered to protest against the Syrian regime.15:20A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Hama’s city of Salamiyyeh shows hundreds of protestors gathered chanting, “The people want to bring down the regime.”15:19 Nader Said, 48 years old, was killed in Homs’ neighborhood of Bab al-Sabaa. (S.N.N)15:19 Protesters in the al-Asali neighborhood in Damascus are being fired. Two young men have been injured so far. (S.N.N)15:18 Protesters in al-Khodor neighborhood in Homs are being fired at. (S.N.N)15:18 People are protesting against the Syrian regime in Artouz in Rif Damascus. (S.N.N)15:17 Protesters in al-Khodor neighborhood in Homs are being fired at. (S.N.N)15:16 People are protesting in Kafr Shams in Daraa governorate. (S.N.N)15:15 Young man Deyaa Ramez al-Najjar was killed in Homs. (S.N.N)15:15 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Hama shows thousands of protestors marching and calling for “bringing down the regime.”15:15 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Damascus neighborhood of Midan shows dozens of people gathered chanting against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and saying “Syria is free…Bashar out.”15:12 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Edleb city of Kfar Nabal shows thousands of people marching and chanting against the Syrian regime.15:10 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Damascus neighborhood of Roke Eddine shows dozens of anti-regime protestors gathered and chanting, “God is the greatest.15:08 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the city of Madaya, near Damascus, shows hundreds of people gathered and chanting, “Long live Syria and let Bashar al-Assad fall.”15:06 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the city of Zabadani, near Damascus, shows thousands of protestors marching and chanting, “Syria wants freedom.”15:00 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Latakia shows thousands of people gathered and chanting, “No for Iran, No for Syria, we want to topple the devil” and “The people want to bring down the regime.” The demonstrators can be seen later preparing to burn the flags of Iran and Hezbollah.15:00 Explosions can be heard in Homs’s neighborhood of Bab al-Sabaa. (S.N.N)14:59 Mass protest begins in Sanamayn in the Daraa governorate. People are chanting for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N)14:58 Heavy gunfire can be heard in Homs’ neighborhoods of Bab al-Sabaa and Baba Amr. (S.N.N)14:57 Mass protest begins in Talbisa. Protesters are chanting for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N)14:56 Tanks are storming Homs’s neighborhood of Baba Amr to disperse protesters. Three have been injured until now. (S.N.N)14:55 Gunfire can be heard in Homs’s neighborhood of al-Inshaat. (S.N.N)14:55 Arab Tawhid Party leader Wiam Wahhab said on Friday that Syria will not abandon Hezbollah or its alliance with Iran.14:46 Thousands of people are protesting in Damascus’s neighborhood of al-Qadam. (S.N.N)14:45 Mass protest begins in Madaya in Rif Damascus. (S.N.N)14:45 Thousands of people are protesting in Damascus’s neighborhood of al-Qadam. (S.N.N)14:43 People are protesting in the Palestinian refugee camp of Daraa. (S.N.N)14:42 Thousands of people are protesting in the Deir Baalba area in Homs. Protesters are calling on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to leave. (S.N.N)14:40 A young man was killed in a Palestinian refugee camp in Homs after trying to protect the injured who were being transferred to the hospital. (S.N.N)14:39 Thousands of people are protesting against the regime in Moadamia in Damascus. (S.N.N)14:38 Mass protest begins in Halafya in Hama. People are chanting against the regime. (S.N.N)14:35 People are protesting in the Houran province town of Al-Harak. Security forces have opened fire. (S.N.N)14:34 Mass protest against the regime begins in Zabadani, outside of Damascus. (S.N.N)14:33 Two were injured in Homs by the gunfire of security forces and shabeeha militants gunfire in Qusayr. (S.N.N)14:30 People are protesting in Hom’s neighborhood of Bab as-Sabaa. (S.N.N)14:29 Three young men were arrested in Sayf al-Dawla in Aleppo. (S.N.N)14:28 People are protesting in the town Basr al-Hareer in the Houran province. People are chanting, “Death is better than humiliation.” (S.N.N) 14:28 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Qoursour neighborhood of Homs shows protesters trying to help a wounded person.14:27 People began protesting al-Tall, outside Damascus. (S.N.N)14:26 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Qamishli shows protesters rallying against the regime.14:26 Thousands of people are protesting against the regime in Homs’ neighborhood of al-Khalidiyeh. (S.N.N)14:25 People began protesting Sakhour in Aleppo. (S.N.N)14:25 People are protesting in Qatna, outside Damascus. Protesters are chanting for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N)14:24 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Deir az-Zour shows protesters rallying against the regime. Participants are holding a banner voicing thanks to “free media outlets.”14:22 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the city of Daraa shows protesters rallying against the regime.14:19 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Qaboun in Damascus shows thousands of protesters rallying against the regime, calling on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to leave.14:17 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Midan street in Homs shows protesters rallying against the regime and saluting fallen martyrs.14:16 People in Banyas were not able to protest after Friday’s prayers. They headed to a nearby town to demonstrate, but they were dispersed by security forces who fired at them. Gunfire is ongoing. (S.N.N.)14:15 A mass protest started in Assal al-Ward, which is outside Damascus. People are chanting for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N.)14:14 People are protesting in Mezzeh in Damascus. (S.N.N.)14:13 A mass protest has started in Ariha in the Edleb district. The protest was dispersed by security forces and shabeeha militants. (S.N.N.)14:13 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Waer area of Homs shows thousands of protesters rallying against the regime and calling on President Bashar al-Assad to step down.14:12 Protesters are being fired at in the Homs neighborhood of Al-Qarabees. (S.N.N.)14:11 Thousands of people are protesting in Damascus’ Qaboun area. They are calling for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N.)14:07 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Amouda shows protesters rallying against the regime, calling on President Bashar al-Assad to step down.14:04 A YouTube video purportedly filmed in Homs’ Ghouta neighborhood shows protesters rallying against the regime, calling on President Bashar al-Assad to step down.14:01 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Homs’ Baba Amro neighborhood shows thousands protesters rallying against the regime, chanting for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to “leave.”14:00 People who finished prayers in Al-Habshi Mosque in Homs began protesting. The demonstrators are being fired at; many being injured. (S.N.N.)13:59 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Homs’ Baba Amro neighborhood shows protesters rallying against the regime, chanting, “The Syrian people want freedom.”13:59 A mass protest started in the Houran province town of Tafas. (S.N.N.)13:58 Mass protest begins in the Houran province town of Kherbet Ghazaleh. People are calling on President Bashar al-Assad to leave. (S.N.N.)13:57 Thousands of people are protesting in the Homs district town of Qusayr. (S.N.N.)13:56 Protesters are heading from Al-Khodor neighborhood of Homs to the Bab as-Sabaa area of the city. (S.N.N.)13:55 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Houran province town of Naheta shows protesters rallying against the regime while holding a huge Syrian flag.13:53 A mass protest started in Jableh. Demonstrators are chanting for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N.)13:52 Thousands of people are protesting in Rastan against the regime. (S.N.N.)13:52 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Hama’s Kfar Zita shows protesters rallying against the regime.13:51 Thousands of people are protesting in al-Hajar al-Aswad in Damascus. Protesters are calling for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N.)13:50 A mass protest started in the Houran province town of Maarba. (S.N.N.)13:47 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Homs shows protesters rallying against the regime.13:46 Security forces attacked protesters in Qusayr in Homs. (S.N.N.)13:45 A mass protest has started in the Houran province town of Naheta. (S.N.N.)13:45 Around 100 Syrians crossed into Lebanon from the Syrian town of Qusayr, Al-Jazeera reported13:44 A mass protest began in Teebat al-Imam in Hama. Protesters are calling on President Bashar al-Assad to leave. (S.N.N.)13:43 People are protesting in the Houran province town of Dael. People are chanting against the regime. (S.N.N.)13:42 A mass protest started in the Homs town of Qusayr. Around 20,000 people are protesting. (S.N.N.)13:41 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in Abu Kamal shows hundreds of protesters rallying against the regime.13:40 Gunfire can be heard in Jassem. (S.N.N.)13:38 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Friday in the Aleppo district town of Ayn al-Arab shows protesters rallying in the city’s streets, calling for the regime’s fall.13:35 People began protesting in Baraza in Damascus and calling for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N.)13:34 Security forces are deployed in Darayya. Four young men have been arrested in an attempt to prevent people from protesting. (S.N.N.)13:33 Mass protest begins in Houran’s town of Teebah. (S.N.N.)13:31 A protest started in Homs’ Houla, Waar, Inshaat neighborhoods. (S.N.N.)13:29 A protest started in the Mufti neighborhood of Hasaka. Protesters are chanting in support of Amouda and against the regime. (S.N.N.)13:28 Detentions are being carried out in the Roken Eddine neighborhood of Damascus. (S.N.N.)13:27 A mass protest began in the Jiza neighborhood of Houran. People are chanting for overthrowing President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. (S.N.N.)13:26 A protest began in Homs, with protesters calling for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N.)13:25 People are protesting against the regime in Daraa al-Balad. (S.N.N.)13:22 A mass protest calling for overthrowing the regime has begun in Afreen in Aleppo. (S.N.N.)13:20 A mass protest has started in Deir az-Zour. People are chanting, “The people want to overthrow the regime.” (S.N.N.)13:18 A mass protest started in the Edleb district town of Jerjnez. Protesters are calling on President Bashar al-Assad to leave. (S.N.N.)13:17 A protest against the regime and in support of Amouda started in Hasaka. (S.N.N.)13:16 A protest erupted in the Aleppo district town of Ayn al-Arab calling for the regime’s fall, Al-Jazeera reported.13:15 Most mosques in Masyfra in the Houran province are besieged by security forces. Those who were praying are still inside. Security forces are getting ready for an attack. (S.N.N.)13:14 A mass protest began in Darbasiya and calls for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N.)13:13 Thousands of people are protesting in Amouda. (S.N.N.)13:12 A large demonstration started in the eastern city of Abu Kamal, with demonstrators heading for the city’s Freedom Square. People are calling on President Bashar al-Assad to leave. (S.N.N.)13:10 People are protesting in Edleb district town of Binnish. They are calling for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N.) 13:02 People started protesting after Friday prayers in the Edleb district town of Kafr Nabl. They are chanting for freedom and for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N.) 12:59 People are protesting in Achrafieh in Aleppo in front of the Badawi Mosque. (S.N.N.) 12:57 A protest in support of Amouda and against the regime has begun in Qamishli. Protesters are calling on President Bashar al-Assad to leave.(S.N.N.) 12:56 A protest in support of Amouda has started in Ras al-Ayn in the Hasaka district.(S.N.N.) 12:55 A protest started in Qahtaniya which is 30 kilometers away from the northern city of Qamishli. Protesters are chanting in support of Amouda and calling for overthrowing the regime.(S.N.N.) 12:53 A protest has begun in Amouda, with demonstrators calling for overthrowing the regime.(S.N.N.) 12:30 Security forces announced a curfew in Enkhel on Friday from 11 a.m. till 3 p.m. and prohibited prayers in the town’s big mosques. (S.N.N.) 11:28 A demonstration has started in the northern town of Kobani, with protesters calling for the regime’s fall. (S.N.N.) 11:21 Security reinforcement have arrived in Amouda. They are concentrating at the industrial school. (S.N.N.) 10:11 The Turkish Foreign Ministry denied “strongly” reports that Turkey told western states and NATO that it plans to launch a military operation in a number of Syrian cities, reported the National News Agency on Friday. 9:33 US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that time is running out for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, AFP reported. 9:11 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Thursday night in Latakia shows protesters marching in the city’s streets, calling for the regime’s fall. 08:51 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Thursday night in Karnaz in Hama shows protesters rallying against the regime, calling for its fall. 08:51 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Thursday night in Houla in Homs shows protesters rallying against the regime, chanting against former Syrian President Hafez al-Assad. 08:46 A YouTube video purportedly filmed on Thursday night in Kfar Mabouda, outside of Hama, shows protesters rallying against the regime chanting, “We don’t love you [President] Bashar [al-Assad].”8:01 Security forces have raided The town of Taiba in Daraa, arresting many residents of the city. (The Syrian Revolution 2011)7:54 Syrian troops swept into new villages in the northwest on Thursday as the second city Aleppo saw anti-regime protests and as pro-democracy dissidents joined ranks at home and abroad, activists told AFP. 7:50 A video purportedly filmed Thursday night in Homs’ Houla neighborhood shows dozens of protesters chanting, “The people want the overthrow of the regime.” 7:48 Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Thursday that he plans to visit Syria, AFP reported.7:43 Since the morning over 150 buses of security forces have arrived to eastern Daraa district villages and headed to the city itself. (S.N.N.) 7:30 Demonstrators dance in a protest purportedly filmed overnight in the town of Kfar Nabouda, which is north of Hama.7:20 Security forces are conducting a mass-arrest campaign in the Houran province town of Tayyiba. There is heavy gunfire in the province’s towns of Mousayfra, Jiza and there are reports of injuries. (S.N.N.) 6:00 A video purportedly filmed Thursday night in the town of Sarmeen, which is east of Edleb, shows dozens of protesters chanting, “Leave, leave [President] Bashar [al-Assad].”6:00 Dozens of protesters march down a street in a night demonstration purportedly filmed Thursday night in Hama.4:00 Dozens of protesters chant, “God is greater,” and “The people want the overthrow of the regime,” in a video purportedly filmed overnight Jamiliya neighborhood of Aleppo.1:15 People in the Assily and Qadam neighborhoods are chanting, “God is greater.” (S.N.N.)1:00 Aircrafts flying east of Maarat an-Naaman are firing toward the Wadi ad-Dayf area. (S.N.N.)1:00 There is sporadic gunfire in the Latakia neighborhood of Saliba, while a demonstration is beginning in the Ramel area of the city. (S.N.N.) 0:00 After a massive demonstration in Homs’ Ghouta neighborhood, security forces and shabeeha (thugs) surrounded the protesters and fired on them. (S.N.N.)0:00 Shabeeha (thugs) have deployed in the Moadamiya area of Damascus, and the army has set up checkpoints in the area. (S.N.N.)0:00 There is a demonstration now in the Deir az-Zour in the Madlaji roundabout. About 10,000 people have gathered at the rally and are calling for the fall of the regime. (S.N.N.)0:00 A video purportedly filmed Thursday night in Damascus’ Qadam neighborhood shows protesters chanting, “God is greater.”

Syrian forces shot dead nine protesters on Friday as tens of thousands of people called on President Bashar to step down in some of the biggest demonstrations since Syria’s uprising began in March.

The Local Coordination Committees, a group of grassroots activists, said three demonstrators were shot dead in the central city of Homs, three in the northern province of Idlib, two in Damascus suburbs and one in Latakia.

Defying Assad’s military crackdown, demonstrators took to the streets again after Friday prayers across the country, from towns near the western Lebanese border to the desert regions near Iraq in the east.

“Bashar get out of our lives,” read placards carried by thousands of Kurds who marched in the northeastern city of Amouda, according to a YouTubevideo taken by resident.

In the city of Hama, video footage appeared to show tens of thousands of protesters massed in a central square. Witnesses and activists said demonstrators in Hama and in Kurdish eastern areas carried red cards, employing a soccer symbol to demand Assad’s “sending off.”

Authorities banned most international media from operating in Syria since the outbreak of the protests in March, making it difficult to verify reports from activists and authorities.

State television said gunmen had fired on security forces in Homs in several other towns, wounding two of them.

In the old Homs district of Bab Sbaa, a witness said several armored vehicles deployed and soldiers fired at protesters from road blocks set up in main streets in the city of one million.

Another activist in Homs said the death toll could be higher, with troops surrounding a private hospital in Bab Sbaa and several wounded people rushed to another hospital on the outskirts of the city where security forces were not present.

ASSAD “RUNNING OUT OF TIME”

Protesters have taken to the streets for 14 weeks to protest against Assad in unrest which has claimed the lives of around 1,300 civilians, according to rights groups. Authorities say 500 police and soldiers have been killed by gunmen they also blame for most of the civilian deaths.

Alongside the military crackdown, Assad has promised a national dialogue on political reforms and on Monday gave a rare platform to opposition demands when authorities allowed a conference in Damascus attended by 150 intellectuals.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she was “disheartened” by reports of continued violence near the Syrian border with Turkey. Monday’s meeting in Damascus, she said, was not enough on its own to address demands for reform.

“It is absolutely clear that the Syrian government is running out of time,” she said during a visit to Lithuania.

“They are either going to allow a serious political process that will include peaceful protests to take place throughout Syria and engage in a productive dialogue with members of the opposition and civil society, or they’re going to continue to see increasingly organized resistance.”

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that tank assaults killed three people overnight in hillside villages of the northern Idlib province near the Turkish border.

Around 100 people crossed over into Lebanon early on Friday, witnesses said. Thousands have fled to Lebanon during the three months of unrest, but many have returned and it is unclear how many remain in Lebanon.

Syrian television showed a pro-Assad demonstration of around 100 people in the northern city of Aleppo on Friday, and state media reported several other large gatherings on Thursday which they said expressed support for Assad’s proposed reforms.

The United States and European Union have imposed sanctions on Assad and his top officials in response to the violent repression of the protests.

On Wednesday the U.S. Treasury Department said it was also imposing sanctions against Syria’s security forces for human rights abuses and against Iran for supporting them.

The Treasury named the four major branches of Syria’s security forces and said any assets they may have subject to U.S. jurisdiction will be frozen and that Americans are barred from any dealings with them.

Damascus and Tehran both deny Western accusations that Iran has supported the crackdown on Syrian protesters.

…BBC: Syria: ‘Hundreds of thousands’ join anti-Assad protestsHundreds of thousands of people have staged anti-government protests across Syria, despite an ongoing military crackdown, reports say.

Rights groups say at least five people were shot dead by government troops in the central city of Homs.

Protests were reported in the capital, Damascus, in eastern and western cities and in towns along the border regions.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has warned time is running out for Syria’s government to usher in reforms.

Speaking during a visit to Lithuania, she said President Bashar Assad would face more organised resistance to his rule unless the country saw “a genuine transition to democracy”.

Human rights groups estimate that about 1,700 people have been killed in three months of anti-government protests.

Mr Assad has promised a dialogue on introducing political reforms but the protesters are calling for him to stand down.

Hundreds of thousands of people were reported to have taken to the streets across Syria after prayers on Friday, following calls on social networks for fresh demonstrations.

Some opposition activists said as many as 3m people joined the demonstrations nationwide, but this figure cannot be independently verified.

In Homs, five people were reportedly shot dead and several injured as government troops fired on protesters – armoured vehicles were deployed in the Baba Amr district of the city, activists said.

Abdel-Karim Rihawi, president of the Syrian League for Human Rights, told AFP news agency tens of thousands of people had left mosques in Deir Ezzor, in the east, and taken to the streets.

Two people were reportedly killed during a protest in Damascus’ suburb of Qadam.

Activists said more than 500,000 people were protesting in Hama, 210 km (130 miles) north of Damascus.

One Hama resident told the BBC Arabic: “Hundreds of thousands are chanting ‘Leave, leave, the people want the fall of the regime.’ All of Hama is celebrating. There are people chanting from their windows and from the fronts of their homes. All of Hama is on the streets today.”

Protests were also staged in Syria’s second largest second city of Aleppo, where police fired tear gas against demonstrators, reports say.

Syria’s state TV aired images of pro-regime rallies in the northern city.

It showed people waving national flags and chanting “God, Syria, Bashar and that’s it.”

‘Genuine transition’

The Syrian Revolution 2011 group had called on protesters to turn out after Friday prayers, with the message to Mr Assad: “We don’t love you… Go away, you and your party.”

Pro-government rallies were also held in Damascus and several other towns on Friday, with marchers saying they backed Mr Assad’s pledges to reform.

The latest anti-Assad demonstrations follow the death of three more civilians overnight in the north-western region of Jabal al-Zawiyah, activists said – two in the town of al-Bara and one in the nearby village of Brim.

AFP also quoted activists as saying there had been explosions on Friday in the coastal city of Latakia.

Speaking earlier on Friday, Mrs Clinton said the Syrian authorities “know what they have to do”.

“They must begin a genuine transition to democracy and allowing one meeting of the opposition in Damascus is not sufficient action toward achieving that goal,” she said.

”It is absolutely clear that the Syrian government is running out of time. There isn’t any question about that.

“They are either going to allow a serious political process that will include peaceful protests to take place throughout Syria and engage in a productive dialogue with members of the opposition and civil society, or they’re going to continue to see increasingly organised resistance.”

Rights campaigners estimate that more than 1,350 civilians and 350 security personnel have been killed since mid-March as security forces try to stifle anti-government protests.

Barzeh, Syria (CNN) — At least nine people were killed in an angry day of protests across Syria on Friday, six in the restive western city of Homs and three others in the outskirts of the capital Damascus.

Demonstrators also massed in Aleppo, Hama, and other locations, according to activists and videos surfacing on the Internet, and they come on what has been a weekly rite: Countrywide anti-government protests after Muslim prayers every Friday since the country’s unrest began more than three months ago.

Rami Abdulrahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told CNN that along with the six dead in Homs, two were killed in al-Qadam and another in Daraya — both Damascus suburbs. Abdulrahman said the death toll since mid-March is more than 1,360 civilians and more than 340 army and security personnel.

State TV reported that “armed men” in al-Qadam shot at anti-riot forces and citizens, killing a civilian. Footage showed people with their faces covered throwing rocks. The report said armed men shooting at police and civilians in Homs killed a police officer and attackers assaulted the labor union headquarters and wounded one person.

It is unclear whether those fatalities are among the six reported by the human rights group.

Human rights activists have said that Syrian security forces have been launching violent crackdowns on peaceful protesters since mid-March. World powers have denounced the regime for its fierce clampdown on protests. Syria, however, has disputed the criticism and has blamed the bloodshed on “armed groups.”

But the Syrian regime has made significant gestures amid the mounting criticism. Earlier this week, it allowed opposition activists to hold a gathering, and on Friday, the government escorted international reporters, including CNN’s Arwa Damon, to anti-government protests.

She witnessed a protest of a few hundred people in the Damascus suburb of Barzeh, hearing people chant for freedom and call for the downfall of the regime. Protesters changed “peaceful, peaceful” around a massive Syrian flag.

Despite warnings from government minders of danger, Damon and a CNN crew broke away to look around and talk to others.

Last week in Barzeh there had been violence, with at least five people killed, and bullet holes in a number of buildings illustrated the violent aftermath.

CNN journalists met a man who said his 27-year-old son was killed weeks ago, and others showed spots where other casualties occurred.

Damon spoke to a man who said he was a doctor and worked in a tiny room that served field hospital to treat injured demonstrators. He said people were afraid they’d be arrested if they went government hospitals and chose to be treated there. Some bled to death, the doctor said.

People on the street in Barzeh told Damon that there haven’t been armed elements among protesters. But many of them covered their faces with scarves for fear of being identified and then detained by security forces. Despite the risks, they said, they believe their movement has the resilience to succeed.

While anti-government demonstrators insisted that Syria can’t exist as long as President Bashar al-Assad is in power, the sentiment was different elsewhere in the area.

In the heart of Damascus, there was a demonstration in support of al-Assad. It was a festive-like atmosphere with people extolling the president.

“God, Syria and only Bashar,” they said.

Security personnel were out in force in Aleppo preventing demonstrators from gathering in the neighborhood of Seif el Dawla, where a protest was planned, said a human rights activist communicating with CNN from Aleppo via text message.

“I tried to go to Seif el Dawla but they stopped the taxi and checked my ID,” said the activist, who for fear of reprisals from the government, only gave his first name “Sanharib.” “If your address shows that you aren’t a resident, you can’t even get in,” he said.

In the rural northwestern region of Jabal Zawiya, crowds of protesters could be heard over the phone denouncing the government of al-Assad, a day after Syrian tanks and helicopters launched deadly raids through villages in the surrounding area.

“They killed a young woman named Fatoum Hallaq,” said a resident named Mohammad Ismail in a phone call with CNN, as protesters chanted anti-government slogans in the background. It is unclear whether she died on Thursday or Friday.

“She was hiding among ruins. There was a pyramid next to her. They bombed the old pyramid and she died there.”

The region of Jabal Zawiya is home to the ruins of several ancient Byzantine “dead cities” which activists claimed Syrian security forces shelled on Thursday.

A video uploaded to YouTube on Friday, purportedly filmed in the western city of Homs, showed men carrying a man whose white shirt was drenched blood, through the streets of the city.

State TV also reported that two security forces were wounded when “armed men” opened fire at security personnel and citizens in Homs.

Thousands are protesting in the western city of Hama, according to a state TV report, and videos purportedly from that western city showed mass gatherings.

Videos purportedly from Qamishli in the Kurdish region, Abu Kamal in the east, and the coastal city of Latakia have surfaced on the Web.

CNN is not able to independently verify the reports.

This comes as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday condemned attacks by Syrian forces on protesters, saying time was running out for al-Assad to begin a meaningful political dialogue with anti-government demonstrators.

Clinton’s remarks followed reports a day earlier that busloads of what an activist called “government thugs” were brought into Aleppo, one of Syria’s largest cities, to break up a demonstration. The activist did not want to be named for security reasons.

“I’m just hurt by recent reports of continuing violence on the border and in Aleppo, where demonstrators have been beaten, attacked with knives by government-organized groups and security forces,” Clinton said during a news conference with Lithuania President Dalia Grybauskaite in Vilnius.

“It is absolutely clear that the Syrian government is running out of time. There isn’t any question about that.”

Clinton said al-Assad’s government must allow “a serious political process that will include peaceful protests to take place throughout Syria and engage in a productive dialogue with members of the opposition and civil society, or they are going to see increasingly organized resistance.”

“We regret the loss of life and we regret the violence, but this choice is up to the Syrian government. And right now we’re looking for actions not words, and we haven’t seen enough of that,” she said.

We’ve seen how Bashar al-Assad packages Big Lies for the West’s consumption: look at his blatantly false suggestion that the Syrian revolution, now in its fourth month, was the handiwork of terrorists. Shockingly, however, his lies are often swallowed whole. When Assad sent 200 tanks, a fleet of gunships and thousands of Army regulars to Jisr al-Shughour in early June, the story every Western media outlet ran with, more or less uncontested, was that 120 Syrian security personnel had been killed by “armed gangs”. Later, that story proved to be bogus. Testimony revealed that a Syrian colonel led a small contingent of mutineers and locals who fought back against the military. Their sole purpose was to hold Jisr al-Shughour long enough to allow its residents to flee to Turkey.

Even now, The New York Times’s Anthony Shadid – who is based in Beirut – writes about “restive” Syria or armed “insurgents”, theories that are backed up by anonymous White House sources who can’t substantiate their claims. Dennis Kucinich and Brooks Newmark have fallen for this trap, too. (Kucinich didn’t have to fly to Syria to learn that“when things finally settle down… President Assad will move in a direction of democratic reforms.”)

Assad is his father’s son. He realises that selling propaganda to the West is easy enough when you’ve got a US administration that wants you to remain in power. It’s doubly easy when you won’t let journalists come and see what’s happening for themselves.

Yesterday a highly suspect document appeared on the Guardian’s website. It alleges that the United States has backed a “roadmap” for democratic transition in Syria (the US denies it), but one that would leave Assad in power. Signed by Louay Hussein and Maan Abdelsalam, members of something called “the National Action Committee”, this 3,000-word paean to appeasement is a strange read. It devotes a whole section to so-called “political intellectuals” – not an element spoken of on the ground in Syria or relied on by the Local Coordination Committees. And it allows for Assad himself to lead the transition to civil democracy.

The roadmap also contains the following recommendations:

– Streets demonstrations ought to be coordinated by local governates and attended by security and military forces “for protection and protection of public and private property”. Death squads, in other words, will have metamorphosed into a Committee of Public Safety.

– “Stop the media war waged by the state institutions against protesters and demonstrators and opponents of the authority, abandoning its role as a party in the conflict.” If this were to happen, then the United States – and Assad himself – would have acknowledge a simple fact: the Syrian people are united in wanting Assad gone.

– In particular, Assad mustn’t “impede the filing of legal complaints against ‘Ad-Dounia’ channel for its inflammatory role against Syrian groups and personalities, and explicit calls for violence and inciting sectarianism.”

This is bizarre. Louay Hussein, as even as The New York Times’s Shadid acknowledges, is one of the “prominent dissidents” in Syria who are “respected but speak largely for themselves”. Tellingly, however, both he and Abdelsalam chaired a 150-member conference in Damascus that was convened with “official” regime approval. That conference was welcomed by the US.

Does the US State Department need telling that any opposition conference that Assad allows to go on in his capital is not one that reflects the will of the Syrian people?

I’ve been in touch with one Damascene, who told me: “I tried to enter the hall and they kicked me out.” Palestinian-Syrian dissident Saeed Barghouti was also denied entry.

The gist of the campaign currently orchestrated by the Assads and their propagandists focuses on blaming Dounia TV, owned by Rami Makhlouf [Assad’s cousin, who has resigned from his business holdings as another misbegotten salve to the opposition], for inflaming sectarian sentiments and spreading lies about the protesters, while state-run media, including Syrian TV and SANA, as well as semi-official media, including Day Press, begin running stories and reports sympathetic to the protests, as we see here and here. The resignation of Rami Makhlouf, his departure from the country, and the recent opposition conference can now be put into perspective, everything makes sense now. The plan for containing the Revolution and keeping things as they are with some decorative changes here and there is now unfolding. Bashar, Maher, Assef and Boushra, and most other members of Assad family, not to mention their security goons supervising the current crackdown, will be saved. The regime will, in essence, survive with minimal casualties.

So Assad is trying to give this “official opposition” the State Department stamp of approval. If Barack Obama wanted to stoke anti-Americanism in Syria, he couldn’t have planned it better.

Syria witnessed the biggest protests today after 16 weeks of unrest, footage from the demonstrations suggested. Activists said hundreds of thousands of people gathered in the central city of Hama, and there were reports of protests across the country. At least 12 people died when the security forces crackdown on the protests, as citizen journalists continued to record the violent crackdown.

• Syrian Activists have rejected a proposed “roadmap” for reform that would allow President Assad to remain in power. Russia condemned the opposition for refusing to take part in a dialogue with the government. The British-based activist Amjad Baiazy has been released seven weeks after being arrested in Damascus.

• Hillary Clinton said Syria is running out of time to reform as she condemned the regime’s “staggering violence”. She also spoke of her concern about clashes yesterday in the northern city of Aleppo.

The US has again increased the pressure on President Bashar al-Assad to implement “genuine reforms” on the biggest day of protest across Syriasince the uprising began nearly four months ago.

Demonstrations took place in the central city of Hama, where 200,000 people were on the streets, and there were clashes in Aleppo, the economic capital. Activists claimed many were injured when police fired on protesters in the Damascus suburb of Daraya. According to demonstrators, at least 12 people were killed on what has been dubbed “the Friday of Departure”, a slogan borrowed from the demonstrators against Hosni Mubarak in Egypt at the start of the Arab uprising.

Syrian forces shot dead three demonstrators in the central city of Homs and thousands reportedly turned out in Deir el-Zor in the east. Access for foreign media was restricted, though a small number of journalists have been allowed in under escort recent days. News agencies reported nine dead.

Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, warnedAssad that he would face more organised resistance to his rule unless he allowed “a genuine transition to democracy”. On Monday the authorities permitted an unprecedented opposition conference to take place in Damascus amid intense discussion among Syrians and foreign governments on whether the regime is able or willing to implement reforms. Although the meeting was sanctioned by the regime, a number of attendees have since been threatened.

“We know what they have to do,” Clinton said during a visit to Lithuania. “They must begin a genuine transition to democracy and allowing one meeting of the opposition in Damascus is not sufficient action toward achieving that goal. It is absolutely clear that the Syrian government is running out of time. There isn’t any question about that.”

ClintonShe called for “productive dialogue with members of the opposition and civil society” but US diplomats said Washington was not backing any particular plan or strategy for reform in Syria. Attempts to portray any group as backed by the US were seen as reflecting disagreements between rival opposition groups.

Louay Hussein and Maan Abdelsalam, authors of a “road map for a secure and peaceful transition to civil democracy”, under which reforms would leave Assad in power for now, have flatly denied that the US has endorsed the plan.The US and EU have imposed sanctions on Assad and his senior officials in response to the violent repression of the protests. But repeated US calls for reform reflect uncertainty about the way ahead. Neither tougher sanctions nor military action look effective in the Syrian context and the US has not called openly for Assad’s overthrow – in striking contrast to its policy towards Muammar Gaddafi in Libya.

Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, also called on the Syrian opposition to hold dialogue with the government.

Human rights campaigners estimate that more than 1,350 civilians have been killed since the uprising began in mid-March. The government says about 500 security personnel have also been killed.